"Patient Anticipation" is featured in Megaphone's 2012 Voices of the Street literary anthology. To read an interview with Ruth at the Voices of the Street launch, click here.

patient anticipation

or ambiguous hopes

define

moments that passed her by

opportunities taken by others

achievements and accolades

won by those she wished she’d be

she feels movement

comprehending paradox

dancing

through what is left behind

sadness glistens

like a sugar granule

that has lost its sweetness

where have the people gone

from the shadows of what is past

teardrops like dew that dries up

and no one ever notices or cares

where is the abundance of friendship

the surrogate family that reciprocates for

those who faded away

into heavenly places

she sits in silence

and unseen or unvisited chains

that tie her to immobility

and a vision of what is past

or lost

she gets around

due to progress

and through the smiles of strangers

she finds a glimmer

a longing for someone to connect with

then at a bus stop

strangers become her family and friends

but only for a moment

alone at home

she sits silently

and patiently

awaiting renewal

and for peace

that is without complete solitude

for peace exists within

and all around

but what good is it

when the imperfect silence that unfolds

within this realm

envelopes the existence of loneliness

and loss

and deafens the hope of oneness

with loving companions

until time steals all hope

and peace exists alone